Benefit checks make up 40 cents of every dollar of income in Malheur County, Oregon
In Malheur County, 40.2% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 61% of U.S. counties.
What drives Malheur County's score
In Malheur County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 78.8. About three in ten adults aged 25 to 54 (30.3%, 2020 to 2024) aren't working, a higher share than in 90% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 67.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Malheur County: jobs, late payments on loans, income and the safety net, collections and bankruptcy, and housing costs. Each part is scored from 0 to 100, and a higher score means worse off than other counties.
Malheur County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (87.4, 2025) and people with a car or retail loan behind (4.4%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 78.8 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202667th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working30.3% · 2020 to 202490th percentile
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- 67.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line18.5% · 202481st percentile
- Children below the poverty line23.5% · 202477th percentile
- People with a disability15.9% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
- People without health insurance9.0% · 2020 to 202459th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$60,814 · 202468th percentile
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- 53.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.7% · August 202553rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.4% · August 202537th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score45.9% · second quarter of 202669th percentile
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- 45.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector26.2% · August 202561st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people87.4 · 202529th percentile
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- 41.6 of 100
Housing costs
Renters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent16.6% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.0% · fiscal year 202742nd percentile
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Sources: Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey; U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents and Census income; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. County Distress Index by American Default Research, from data through Sep 2026.
Where the money in Malheur County comes from
Benefit checks are Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid paid on people's behalf, veterans' benefits, and food and income support, so a high share usually means an older population, low pay, or both. In Malheur County, 17.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Malheur County
Oregon
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Malheur County had its largest rise, from 23.5% in 2004 to 33.9% in 2009.
In Malheur County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about five times its 1969 level, reaching 40.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in only a little more than benefit checks
In Malheur County, Oregon, benefit checks' share of income grew to about five times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 40.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Malheur County getting SNAP food aid rose most from 16.9% in 2011 to 25.3% in 2013, 4.2 points each year.
The share of households in Malheur County getting SNAP food aid doubled from 2009 to 2024, reaching 28.3%
High on the chart: 29.2% in 2017. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Malheur County, Oregon.
How Malheur County has changed
Malheur County's population rose 40% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1989 to 1994, reaching 28,820. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Malheur County, Oregon.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Malheur County rose by about a quarter to 13,510, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 12,519. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Malheur County, Oregon.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.9% | 2025 4.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 22.9% | 2024 18.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,466 | 2024 $60,814 |
The table uses 4.7% for 2025; the score uses 4.4% for the latest year (Oct 2025 to Sep 2026), both from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Malheur County's history
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 31,615. The 2020 Census counted 31,571, 100% of the peak. Census Bureau
1887
Created February 17, 1887 from southern territory of Baker County. Wikipedia
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Since 1964
6 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Malheur County, 1 of them for flooding. FEMA
Malheur County beside its neighbors
Malheur County scores higher than all eight counties that border it, in Oregon, Idaho and Nevada. Of the group, Malheur County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (40.2%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Malheur County, OR | 61 | 18.5% | 40.2% |
| Washington County, ID | 60 | 12.6% | 31.3% |
| Owyhee County, ID | 56 | 13.2% | 21.5% |
| Harney County, OR | 54 | 14.3% | 32.4% |
| Grant County, OR | 53 | 13.4% | 34.1% |
| Baker County, OR | 51 | 13.6% | 34.4% |
| Canyon County, ID | 41 | 9.9% | 21.7% |
| Humboldt County, NV | 30 | 10.6% | 19.5% |
| Payette County, ID | 25 | 12.7% | 24.0% |
Distress score: American Default Research, County Distress Index, data through Sep 2026; each county scored against all 3,144. Poverty rate: Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, 2024. Benefit checks: Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2024. Neighbors share a border, from Census county maps.
Is Malheur County the poorest county in Oregon?
Yes, Malheur County's poverty rate was 18.5% in 2024, the highest of 36 counties in Oregon (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Malheur County ranks 14th of 36 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Malheur County
Housing counselors approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development work at nonprofit agencies. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau describes free foreclosure-avoidance counseling, including help with mortgage-company conversations and available options Source CFPB.
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Community in Action
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Oregon Law Center
Legal aid
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HUD-approved housing counselors
Our help directory lists 1,010 agencies approved for foreclosure counseling, by state.
The score, its 14 measures and their sources, in one file. Free to use with credit to American Default Research.
Download the CSV for Malheur County · Every U.S. county (CSV)
Sources and method
- American Default Research · County Distress Index Data through Sep 2026, built from Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; HUD Fair Market Rents and Census income; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. The County Distress Index is American Default Research's own calculation; the Urban Institute does not produce or endorse it. Our methodology
- Urban Institute · Debt in America Breno Braga, Signe-Mary McKernan, Samantha Atherton, and Kassandra Martinchek, "Debt in America," last updated November 20, 2025, https://datacatalog.urban.org/dataset/debt-america-2025. Licensed under ODC-By 1.0.
- Rent on a two-bedroom and household income The rent share compares HUD fair market rent for fiscal year 2027 with Census Bureau median household income for 2024. The page calls this the typical household's income.
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4) · income shares Where the money in Malheur County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.